Improvement in fire-places



l. M. IRWIN.

Fire-Places.

N0. 142,791, Patented September16,l873.

UNITED STATES APrrrnlv'r OFFICE.

JAMES M. IRWIN, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN FIRE-PLACES.

Specication forming part of Letters Patent No. 142,791, dated September16, 1873; application filed May 17, 1873.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES M. IRWIN, of Pittsburg, Allegheny county,Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Open Coal-BurningFire-Places; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full andcorrect description of the same, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings, in which- Figure I is a perspective view of my grate and itsnues, and Fig. 1I is a vertical central section of the same.

My invention consists, first, in constructing the back wall of alire-place or grate perpendicular, and the opening into the smoke-linehorizontal, and at right angles to each other, which facilitates thedraft, and consumes more perfectly the gases arising from the re, andalso enables the soot to be removed more easily from the flue; and myinvention consists, second, in making a part of the back wall hollow,forming one or more openings on a level with the hearth under thegrate-bars, and also in the wall in the rear of the re. Thesecommunications make a strong draft of air pass directly into the back ofthe fire, producin g a more perfect combustion of the coal 5 and myinvention particularly consists in combining this construction with anordinary grate, so that the grates in common use may be adapted to myimprovement without the necessity of sacrificing the old grate andadopting another.

In the drawings, A represents the gra-tefront; B, the basket or grate;G, the tile or back of the fire-wall, and D the opening into smoke-flue.This opening extends all across the top of the tile G, and is placednear the upper part of the fire-place, the top of which is formed by thetile E, having a lip or projection, P, which projects over the front ofthe back tile G, and catches the smoke as it rises along the face of theback wall, and turns it into the opening D, through which it passes intothe smoke-flue F. The bottom of the flue F and of the opening D forms ahori-` zontal shelf, which catches the soot which falls down the flue,and prevents it from entering the room, and is readily removed from theshelf at intervals with a scraper without danger to carpets or furnitureof the apartment. The back wall G can be constructed of either brick ortile, with perforations below the grate-bars on a level with the hearthby openings, seen at K K K, which communicate with a back iiue orchamber, I, formed between the tile G and the back wall of the chimney.From this flue or chamber openings H H H communicate with the back ofthe basket B just above the gratebars. The openings may all communicatewith one ilue, I, or they may be separated from each other by a brickpartition, and each form a small flue, through which the air producingthe back draft passes in the direction indicated by the arrows in thedrawing.

The operation of my improvement is as follows: The air passes under thefire into the openings K, and through the ilues I and H, and, becomingheated and rarefied, produces a powerful draft upon the back of the coalin the lire, which facilitates its combustion. The smoke and gas thenpass up the high back wall, which, becoming heated7 not only radiatesthe heat into the room, but its vertical position facilitates thecombustion ofthe smoke and gas as they rise. The top tile E then directsthe smoke into the smoke-flue, in the direction indicated by the arrows,and the soot which falls down the flue lodges upon the shelf, and isreadily removed.

I am aware that the air has been introduced into the rear of the coal inthe grate, but by an expensive means, necessitating the removal of theordinary grate and the introduction of a different one; but

What I claim as my invention, and desire t0 secure by Letters Patent,is-

1. The back wall ofI an open grate with perforations below thegrate-bars, and perforations back of and opening into the basket orgrate, each communicating with a chamber or passage constructed in theback wall, the whole combined with an ordinary grate and flue,substantially as described.

2. In an ordinary open-grate tire-place, the combination of thepassages, extending from beneath the grate through the back wall to andinto the rear of the basket or grate, with the vertical back G,smoke-flue, and grate, substantially as and for the purpose described.

The above specification of my said invention signed and witnessed atPittsburg this 13th day of May, A. D. 1873.

JAMES M. IRWIN.

Witnesses:

ALEX. Mnrcnnrr, G. M. SHOFF.-

